Cincinnati Bengals: Takeaways from Week 5 win vs. Dolphins
By Kenn Korb
Let’s look back at the Cincinnati Bengals win in Week 5 over the Miami Dolphins and observe some notable takeaways from the game.
Another week, another win for a Cincinnati Bengals team which continues to exhibit a surprising amount of resilience.
It may have taken them until the final stretch of the game, but their 27-17 win over the Miami Dolphins in Week 5 finished out as yet another impressive effort in their 4-1 beginning to the season.
Here are some takeaways to remember from the contest.
Defensive Line Talent Does Shine Through
Entering this game, it seemed pretty obvious that the Bengals should have a massive advantage in the trenches when they lined up on defense. Even at their best, the Miami offensive line had holes on the interior. After injuries to their left guard and center (Josh Sitton and Daniel Kilgore), a thin pool of blocking talent became even more barren.
On Cincinnati’s end, they are full of both young and veteran talent all across the line; they quite possibly go eight deep with useful players, and that’s even after losing Ryan Glasgow (who was having a nice little breakout season) to a torn ACL.
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The results played out better than anyone may have hoped for Cincinnati. Though they did allow Miami to find a useful ground game down multiple starters on their line (128 rushing yards, 5.8 yards per carry as a team), the pass rushing portion of their attack was potent. Geno Atkins did exactly what I expected, picking up the eighth two-plus-sack game of his career. Yet again he was joined on the sack front by Carlos Dunlap, who also provided multiple QB hits and a late forced fumble for Cincinnati.
It wasn’t just the standard excellent play by those two, either. The contributions came from everywhere, and often left a major impact. Veteran Michael Johnson got pressure and ended up with an interception he would return for a touchdown to tie the game up at 17-17. Rookie Sam Hubbard took the fumble caused by Dunlap to the house for a game-sealing score. Carl Lawson, Jordan Willis and Andrew Billings each threw in a QB hit.
Altogether, the defensive line was responsible for three sacks, two pass knockdowns, eight QB hits, two turnovers and two touchdowns. That’s quite a performance, but well within reason based on the talent packed into the unit. If they can continue hitting this level as the season marches forward, this team will truly be a force to be reckoned with.